Many of us know the parable about the prodigal son. In Luke 15:11-32, Jesus tells this story of a man with two sons. The younger of the two sons asked his father for his entire inheritance and after his father gave it to him, he went away and squandered it on frivolous living. He finds himself hungry and broke and realizes that his father’s servants are living better than this, so he decides to go home, apologize to his father, and ask to be made a servant.
However, when his father sees him coming, he greets him with extravagance and gifts and decides to throw a party to celebrate that his son, who was lost, has been found.
Most of us read this parable, or have heard of it, and focus on the prodigal son as an unbeliever who was once lost and then came to Christ and is reunited with the family of God. But growing up, I always identified with the older brother. Notice his response to his brother’s homecoming in verse 25:
“Now his older son was in the field. And as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of his servants and asked what these things meant. And he said to him, ‘Your brother has come, and because he has received him safe and sound, your father has killed the fatted calf.’
“But he was angry and would not go in. Therefore his father came out and pleaded with him. So he answered and said to his father, ‘Lo, these many years I have been serving you; I never transgressed your commandment at any time; and yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might make merry with my friends. But as soon as this son of yours came, who has devoured your livelihood with harlots, you killed the fatted calf for him.’
“And he said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that I have is yours. It was right that we should make merry and be glad, for your brother was dead and is alive again, and was lost and is found.”
Luke 15:25-32 NKJV
I completely understood where he was coming from. I was never a wayward child, I tried to always do the right thing and follow the rules. I wasn’t perfect, by any means, but I always tried to be. So, I understood what the brother was feeling that it was unfair that the father rejoiced over the one who hadn’t followed the rules or done the right thing.
There was even a time when I was a teenager that I resented always doing the right thing. It didn’t always feel like a conscious choice, but a compulsion that I had to do to maintain my “perfect image.” I even resented those that could identify with the prodigal son because after they changed their life around, they had this incredible testimony that they could use to tell others about Jesus, and I felt like my own story wasn’t that impactful.
And then I had my own kids…
It wasn’t until I was older and, honestly until I had my own kids, that I could really understand the whole story. While the prodigal son had his own issues with frivolous living and squandering his father’s legacy, he learned how to get passed his pride and humble himself before his father. He understood his place in his family and was ultimately thankful that his father loved him so much to rejoice in him coming home, even though he was nothing.
The brother may have always done the right thing on paper, but his heart was hard. He was stuck in a legalistic trap that when we do more good things, we deserve more of a reward. He was more focused on the things he could get from his father because of his service than being thankful to just be in his father’s presence.
That’s where I was at…
I thought that I had lived this life worthy of being a child of God and I thought that if I could just be perfect enough, that I would be rewarded. But that doesn’t leave room for God’s mercy. That way of thinking only leads to a legalistic mindset that there is no room for screw-ups in God’s kingdom. And that simply isn’t true. I had to humble myself and realize that no matter how many good things I had done or how well I followed the rules, I was still just as broken and desperate as any prodigal son. I was still just as in need of a Savior as anyone I was judging for living in a way I thought was wrong.
Sometimes, I think this is the harder battle to fight. Because to the outside world, this person looks much more like they “should.” They look like someone who is living according to a higher standard. They look the part. People will even tell you that you’re doing a good job, or you have nothing to worry about. You’re a good person. But unless you recognize that you are just as much a fallen human in a broken, sinful world, and you NEED Jesus just like everyone else, you will not have a place in God’s kingdom.
Are You The Prodigal Son, the Brother, Or Both?
So if you’re someone who identifies with the prodigal son in this parable, I would encourage you to turn from your ways. Run back to Jesus, because He is always there waiting for you with open arms. And if you’re more like me, and you identify with the brother, I would encourage you to put down your stones and soften your heart, because scripture says we have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). It may not look like it to the world, and we may struggle with different things, but sin affects all of us and we need to put down our pride so that God can use us for His glory.
We may also go through different seasons where we feel more like a prodigal son, or seasons where we feel more like the brother, but either way, we need to remember that once sin entered the world, we all became unworthy to be called sons and daughters of the King. It is only by His grace and mercy that we can come before the throne. Remember this when you stray from God AND when your pride gets the best of you. God is always ready with open arms to receive us back to Him.
